Centaur
(formerly "always chaotic evil" )}} The centaur are a half-humanoid, half-horse, warlike tribal race. They abound in central and southern Kalimdor, primarily in Desolace and the Barrens, where they engage in constant war against other centaur and tauren tribes. Though rare, centaur could be found in woods of the Eastern Kingdoms and the Blasted Lands were once heavily populated with centaur. They are savagery and brutality incarnate. Origin Centaur originated from Cenarius and/or from his sons' Zaetar and "the centaur". Five clans of centaur in Kalimdor are the bastard offspring of Zaetar, a keeper of the grove and the eldest son of the demigod Cenarius, and the earth elemental princess Theradras. They are therefore related to keepers of the grove and dryads through their Cenarion lineage, and the element of Earth. The centaur, ever grateful creatures, slew their father in a bloodthirsty rage, and their mother buried his remains in Maraudon, which became a holy place for the centaur. To this day, she stands guard over Zaetar's remains, holding his spirit prisoner. Other centaur, some integrated into Zaetar's clans and those that make up other clans are said to be born from Cenarius or by his son, "the centaur"; See Other Legends below. Conflict with the Horde Hatred of the Centaur, a tauren myth, tells how the early tauren were driven from their ancestral lands (presumably in Mulgore) and forced to wander the Barrens of Kalimdor. The tauren claim that the centaur have always existed to scourge the land. When the orcs first arrived in Kalimdor, they found the nomadic tauren under constant attack from the centaur. Through the aid of the orcs, the tauren were finally able to reclaim their ancestral lands and live in peace once more. The conflict between the Horde and the centaur continues, however, particularly in the Barrens. The members of the Horde hate them so intensely that they have taken to skinning the corpses and making rugs out of them. Such decorations are a common sight in cities such as Orgrimmar and Thunder Bluff. The Horde and the Alliance are both attempting to control the savage centaur by encouraging inter-tribal conflicts, so as to prevent the centaur from banding together and becoming a dangerous force. Eastern Kingdom centaur Clans of centaur dwell in the forests and Blasted Lands of the Eastern Kingdoms. They are not peaceful beasts, but rather meat eaters and occasionally cannibalistic; these ferocious creatures are the bane of the other forest dwellers. They claim a territory with bloody sacrifice, making it their own through martial prowess and dark rituals. Raising one of these centaurs as a member of the undead is impossible. Necromancers claim that this is because the horse-beasts sold their souls to a darker power long ago and so cannot be claimed by another. These creatures live in the deep forests near human settlements, occasionally proving their prowess by raiding human villages and carrying away the women and children for feasts. Some human settlements make war on centaur tribes, driving back the cruel horsemen with fierce determination. If it were not for the centaur pride, they may have joined with the Scourge when the plague struck the human settlements to the north of the forests. Since centaur in the Eastern Kingdoms are rare, a traveling centaur is more likely to draw curiosity than arrows. Garithos unleashed a squad of mercenary centaur khans in the Eastern Kingdoms in Lordaeron to try to stop the blood elves from escaping Dalaran, in The Crossing. The Pariah Despite the hostility each centaur clan has traditionally had for the others, recently a centaur known only as the Pariah, labeled as a heretic by his people, developed plans to unify the clans. Players can aid him in his design by entering the holy tomb of Maraudon and forging the Amulet of Union, which he intends to use to bring his warring people together as one. Whether or not the centaur would actually be able to consolidate into a unified, civilized people remains unknown. If redeemed, the spirit of Zaetar will also speak of hope for a more positive future for his offspring. Other Legends According to legends in the Warcraft III Manual, the Manual of Monsters, and Horde Player's Guide, 2006, there is another myth for the origin of the centaur race. It has been theorized by night elves that centaur may have been the direct bastard offspring of Cenarius. However, as the manual states, this myth may just be a legend (so not necessarily true). Legend holds that the primitive, barbaric centaurs are actually the bastard off-spring of the night elf demigod, Cenarius. Whether or not this is true, it is certain that they are savagery and brutality incarnate. Cenarius's children are literally the offspring of the demigod Cenarius. Centaur are his bastard children, while dryads are his daughters and keepers of the grove are his sons. Centaur in Azeroth are the bastard children of the demigod Cenarius. Centaur are the cursed offspring of Cenarius. Centaur somewhat resemble his other children, dryads and keepers of the grove: they have the torsos, heads and arms of humans, and the bodies and legs of horses. Night elves claim that centaur are the bastard children of the demigod Cenarius. Despite their origins, these primitive, barbaric horsemen are the embodiment of savagery. The origin of the centaur mentioned in Warcraft III manual was likely originally referring to both the centaurs from the Eastern Kingdoms and most if not all centaurs from Kalimdor. However, Zaeter fathered the five tribes of centaur who live in southern Kalimdor, as stated in the first edition of the Warcraft RPG core rule book, World of Warcraft, and Lands of Mystery. Though some of Cenarius centaur may have integrated into those clans. It is said that Cenarius fathered the centaurs of other clans. In fact he fathered at least one centaur according to legend. According to a night elf legend (as told by a Tauren storyteller), it was one of his sons known only as "the centaur" who was the father of clans of centaur as well; "Long, ago, the kaldorei god Cenarius bore three children, the centaur, the dryad, and the keeper of the grove. However, one son, the centaur, grew to despise his beautiful siblings, then all other creatures of the world, and challenged Cenarius. The centaur believed that he was the strongest of the three children, and that Cenarius refused to love him and instead doted on his other children. In embracing his hatred and savagery, he struck his father in blind rage, trying to force his father to love him above all other creatures. In retort, the god cursed the centaur, stripping him of his beauty and powers, leaving him only with his hatred and anger. The centaur fled in rage, and swore a blood feud on all the creatures of the world. He reserved most of his hatred for Cenarius' favored children, and thus the night elves drew his ire as well. We tauren too drew his anger, as he was jealous of our strength and power with the world, the same power he lost. His children carry his anger, and destroy everything they touch, bearing their father's hatred of all things of the world." While the five tribes of centaur (Kolkar, Magram, Mauradine, Gelkis, Galak) fathered by Zaeter is explained by a separate legend, there appears to be some truth to this other legend. It is also implied that some of these children may be integrated into Zaetar's clans as well. It also explains the existence of other tribes found in the Eastern Kingdoms, the Stonetalon centaurs, Centaur Marauders and Krenka. For, it is said that "The Centaur" became the father of many tribes. Appearance Centaur appear as a creature with a horse body and legs with a humanoid torso, arms and head extending from the front part of where a horse neck and head would normally be placed. A full grown male centaur can stand over seven feet tall from hooves to head and weighs over a ton. Kalimdor centaur can actually suffer the effects of undeath. Culture The nomadic centaur culture and the term "Khan" have their roots in the cultures of the Turks and Mongols. Centaur villages resemble traditional Turkic and Mongol yurts. Each tribe of centaur is lead by a Khan, who is generally a leader of above average strength and intelligence. Some of the clans, if not all, practice cannibalism and will eat the flesh of other sapient races as well, such as tauren. Centaur follow a shamanistic faith, but their brand of shamanism is far different from the more gentle practices of the Horde. Curiously, most centaur shamans are female. The centaur are savage and brutal, and they often take prisoners. These prisoners are usually eaten. However, rumors tell of centaur dragging humanoids of all sorts off to become slaves, forcing them to work in hardscrabble opal mines. Opals are used to make crude trinkets, or are thrown into sacrificial offerings to the spirits. Young tauren have made something of a game out of this tradition, snatching away the centaur's offerings and leaving insulting totems in their place. They must be swift, lest they be caught by the centaur, who leave their gutted remains as a warning to others who would consider doing the same. Filthy creatures, the Centaur are always followed by swarms of flies, which are attracted by the centaur's repellent odor. Centaur have no qualms about leaving piles of dung strewn about their encampments, and no concept of privacy. Each of five tribes in Desolace has its own unique tribal color: black, brown, green, red, and yellow. Members use the colors to mark their weapons and their faces. Additional tribal colors include blue, and purple. Languages Centaur speak Low Common and Common. The Krenka tribe speaks Krenkese and Low Common. A few centaur learn the languages of their enemies. A few centaur speak Taur-ahe as a primary language , but most learn it as a secondary language. Centaur remains Centaur skins can be found in many places around Azeroth, even other centaur camps. Centaur skins are all over lower Blackrock Spire, perhaps having come from the rare Eastern Kingdom's breed. If it is the case, then Blackrock clan may have brought the eastern centaur to near extinction by the time of World of Warcraft. Centaur Skins can also be found in some locations in Outland, such as in the ogre leader's hut on the Ango'rosh Stronghold. Other centaur clans beyond Zaetar's five Eastern Kingdom lineage Even though Manual of Monsters states that centaur in the book are the bastard sons of Cenarius , there is debate as to whether eastern kingdoms centaur have a connection to the five tribes in Kalimdor which are the offspring of Zaetar. Some believe they aren't related, and are in fact the offspring of "the centaur", the other son of Cenarius. Another explanation is that they may have been a group or groups of centaur that splintered from the original five tribes and made it across ancient Kalimdor before the sundering, arriving in the present day Eastern Kingdoms. the centaur It may also be that the two legends are one in the same in which the son called "the centaur" may in fact be Zaetor. This would make since since "Centaur" and Zaetor share many things such as there fall from grace do to jealousy. And would explain why "Centaur" children were the same as Zaetor even though his were warped from what a keep of the grove should spawn because of the Earth Elementals. However this would ignore most of the traits and history attributed to "the centaur". Zaetar appears to neither be a bastard, neither does he have the centaur's personality traits, he does not have the same hatred to his siblings as "the centaur". Zaetar was not cursed by his father either (stripped of his beauty to appear as current centaurs), nor did Zaetar sware a blood feud on all creatures of the world. Mythological Basis The centaurs (Kentauroi Thessalioi) are fairly popular beings in Greek mythology, but myths pertaining to them directly are not plentiful. The handfuls of tales that survive relate the nature of a boisterous race of horse-men who care only for drinking and numerous other vices. They were the children of Nephele (a nymph formed out of clouds in the shape of Hera by Zeus). The lustful and devious Lapith king Ixion raped Nephele (thinking it was Hera), thus impregnating her. She promptly gave birth to a clan of horse-men (the Centaurs). Though there are sparse references to female Centaurs from antiquity, they only appear in later art and literature of other cultures. Despite the barbaric nature of centaurs in general, certain centaurs were renowned for their wisdom. Kheiron (Chiron), for example, was the teacher of some of the greatest of Greek heroes, including Achilles, Herakles, Jason, and Theseus. Blizzard took a distinctly central Asian influence for their centaurs, borrowing cultural elements from peoples such as the Mongols. Most notably, they are led by Khans and live in collapsible huts. See also * Centaur clans * Origin of the races * Manual of Monsters Appendix III * Horde Player's Guide * Lands of Mystery * Warcraft III Manual * Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne Category:Centaurs Category:Creatures Category:Humanoids Category:Lore Category:Warcraft: The Roleplaying Game